Canister



J. D. YOUNG April 20, 1954 CANISTER Filed July A21, 1950 15 40 HMI' 'Z7 l ,I

INVENTOR.

Mame;

Arrow/yay UIN" Patented Apr. 2f),` 1954 UN ITE D S TAT NT OFFICE CANISTER Application July 21, 1950, Serial No. 175,163

2 Claims.

This invention relates to a canister.

The invention has for an object to provide a novel and improved canister for storing hygroscopic commodities embodying a desiocant in the cover thereof whereby the body of air Within the canister and the contents thereof may be maintained in a substantially dehydrated condition.

With this general object in view, and such others as may hereinafter appear, the invention consists in the canister hereinafter described and particularly dened in the claims at the end of this specification.

in general, the invention contemplates a canister for storing hygroscopic commodities, particularly crackers, cereals, sugar, and the like. The canister is provided With a lid or cover havn ing a chamber formed therein, and the latter is filled with a desiccant. The chamber is in open communication with the interior of the canister whereby the hygroscopic commodities Within the canister may be maintained in a crisp and dry condition. In practice, the desiccant may comprise a silica gel, or other known desiccant, treated with a cobalt salt to impart to the gel the ability to change from blue to pink when the gel becomes hydrated, and in accordance With a feature of the present invention, the chamber may embody a Viewing Window to enable the user to note the color of the gel to determine if the same requires revivification. The lid and chamber are preferably of metal and glass so that the lid containing the desiccant may be placed in the oven to reviviiy the desiccant. Provision is also made in the preferred embodiment of the invention for securing a substantially air-tight seal between the lid and the canister.

In the drawings illustrating the preferred ernbodiment of the invention, Fig. 1 is a cross-sectional vievv of the present canister; Fig. 2 is an inverted plan View of the lid or cover portion of the canister showing the desiccant embodied therein; and Fig. 3 is a detail view showing a modified form of sealing gasket.

Referring novv to the drawing which illustrates the invention as embodied in a canister for household use, l@ represents the body portion of the canister which may comprise a cylindrical metal container open at the top and having a bottom l2, and lil represents a metal flanged lid or cover portion arranged to be tightly tted over the open end of the canister. As herein shown, the upper edge or rim of the canister may be provided with a rolled edge l5, and in order to form a substantially air-tight seal between the body portion and the cover of the canister,

(Cl. S12- 31.10

rim may be provided with an annular sealing ring i6 of rubber or like resilient material which is preferably shaped to fit over the rolled edge and down around both the inner and outer sides of the canister Wall for a short distance, as shown. rthe sealing ring may and preferably will be adhesively secured to the rim of the canister, and in operation, an air-tight seal may be produced between the top of the gasket and the under surface of the cover which is pressed tightly against the same. The body portion of the canister may also be provided With the usual annular projection 2li formed therein and with which the lower edge of the flanged portion I8 of the cover may cooperate, as illustrated. In the modification shown in Fig. 3 lateral iins Il serve to provide an additional seal against the interior of the rim of the cover.

As herein shown, the cover is is provided with a central upstanding cylindrical projection having a top Wall 22 and side wall 24 forming a hollow chamber in the underside of the cover Which is arranged to receive a anged or cupshaped retainer 26 forming the bottom wall of the drying chamber containing a desiccant indicated at 28. The anged portion 30 of the re tainer is preferably tightly pressed into the hollow chamber and frictionally engaged by a forced fit with the side Walls 2li of the upstanding projection to form a removable part thereof. The bottom wall of the retainer 26 may be substantially flush with the adjacent portion of the cover, and as herein shown, the bottom wall may be provided with a plurality of perforations or openings 32 for permitting the passage and circu lation of air from the interior of the canister into the interior of the desiccant chamber in order to efliciently dry the air within the body of the canister.

As above stated, the desiccant may and preferably Will be of the color indicating type, and as herein shown, the bottom wall of the retainer it may be provided With a central annular depressed portion 3@ having an opening 36, the depressed portion iorming a seat for a glass Window 38 which may be cemented or crimped into the seat over the opening 36, thus forming a viewing window in the underside of the drying chamber rendering the enclosed desiccant visible to enable the color of the desiccant to be observed in order to determine when the desiccant should be revivied. In order to prevent escape of the desiccant through the openings 32 in the retainer 2G, a sheet of fiberglass or other suitable heat-resisting fabric lll may be placed over the openings and cemented to the inner face of the bottom wall of the retainer 2%, as illustrated.

It will be observed. that the central upstanding projection of the cover forming the upper portion of the drying cartridge forms a convenient handle for assisting in removing the cover from the body portion of the canister. 1n order to revivify the desiccant the entire cover unit may be removed from the body portion of the canister and placed in an oven and heated at around 300 F. for a period of approximately one-half an hour.

In practice, the inner surfaces of the sheet metal body portion of the canister may and preferably will be tin plated, and provided with a White sanitary lacquer coating, and the outer surfaces thereof may be provided with a coating of enamel for protective and decorative purposes. The cover unit ifi including the retaining member 26 may comprise sheet aluminum or other non-corrosive sheet metal.

From the above description it will be observed that the present canister is provided with aY desiccant forming a permanent part of the cover unit, and that the cover unit may be itted in substantially air-tight relation with the body portion of the canister whereby to provide a simple and efficient container for storing hygroscopic commodities and for maintaining the same in a crisp and dry condition.

While the preferred embodiment of the container has been herein illustrated and described, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms Within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

1. A 'canister for storing crackers and other hygroscopic commodities comprising a cylin drical container open at one end providing a mouth of a size substantially that or" the interior of the container, a removable metal cover frictionally and snugly iitted thereon and constituting a closure for said mouth, a desiccant holder formed as an integral part of said cover and removable as a unit therewith and comprising an upwardly projected central portion forming a hollow chamber open at its bottom, a per forated metal retainer ntted into and forming the bottom wall of said chamber and a body of desiccant in said chamber, a sheet of heat-resisting fabric oi a character unaiected by tempera- Fil tures of at least 300 F. disposed upon the retaining member to provide a porous layer for assisting in retaining the desiccant within its chamber, the open end of said container being provided with a sealing strip secured to and extending completely around the upper portion of the outer cylindrical surface of the container and over the top edge thereof, said cover being shaped to form with said strip a watertight seal and to completely cover the same when in its operative position closing the open end of the container.

2. A canister for storing crackers and other hygroscopic commodities comprising a cylindrical container open at one end providing a mouth of a4 size substantially that of the interior oi the container, a removable metal cover frictionally and snugly tted thereon and constituting a closure; for said mouth, a desiccant holder formed as an integral part of said cover and removable as a unit therewith and' comprising an upwardly projected central portion forming a hollow' chamber open at its bottom and a perforated metal retainer ntted into and forming the bottom wall of saidl chamber, and a body of desiccant in said chamber, said perforated retainer comprising a cup-shaped metal member having the marginal portions thereof rictionally engaging the side walls of the chamberdorming portion of the cover, the open end or" said container being provided with a sealing strip secured to and extending completely around the upper portion of the outer cylindrical surface oi the container and over the top edge thereof, said cover being shaped to form with said strip a watertight seal and to completely cover the same when in its operative position closing the open end of the container.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES riwerrrs Number Name' Y Date 2,202,796 Hermani May 28, 1940 2,263,831 Welch Nov. 25, 1941 2,317,882 Beesel Apr. 27, 1943 2,471,442 Morf May 31, 1949 2,546,599 Hicks Mar. 2'?, 1951 2,550,493 Ohlson Apr. 24, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 437,139 Great Britain Get. 1935 

